Excerpt from The House at the End of the Street by Jennie JonesGemma’s dream is within her grasp – then the love of her life comes home and everything changes.

‘What do you know about Grandy’s place?’ Josh asked.Gem’s eyebrows shot up. ‘The lonely homestead?’‘Why d’you call it that?’She shrugged. ‘It’s been empty since he died. Most people just call it the house at the end of the street. What’s it to you anyway?’‘This and that.’ Gem’s exasperation bubbled, overwhelming the original idea of coming out here to calmly persuade him to leave town. ‘This and that,’ she parroted. ‘Is that all you’ve got? Why don’t you want anyone to know what you’ve been doing?’The way he bowed his head and studied the ground, his broad shoulders slumped in some kind of despair, caused Gem some remorse.‘Are you in trouble, Josh?’ she asked in a whisper. Maybe that’s why he was so evasive. Maybe he’d made a big mistake. Maybe he’d been in prison. No, wait—he had a tan.He smiled at her, the skin creasing around his eyes. A little more depth to the crinkles now, suggesting that he’d done a lot of smiling over the years. That he’d enjoyed himself.‘No. I’m not in trouble.’ He seemed to come out of his reverie. He lifted a hand and swept it through her hair, brushing it back from her forehead. ‘Not the way you’re thinking.’ Gem stilled. The gesture was one she remembered from their best-friend days of long ago, but there had been nothing more than friendship in it then—this touch spoke of everything undealt with and unsaid between them since their moment this afternoon.‘Would it be so bad, Gem? You and me. While I’m here.’Her breath hitched. ‘Yes.’ It would kill her to have him then lose him. ‘You’re leaving at the end of next week.’ So she already had more days than she wanted before she could get over him.He studied her for a moment then dropped his hand. ‘So I am.’